1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to sorting purchase items and more particularly relates to sorting purchase items for scan and bag self-checkout systems.
2. Description of the Related Art
Scan and bag self-checkout systems are often used to allow customers to pay for purchase items with little or no intervention from retail or store personnel. As used herein, scan and bag self-checkout systems are referred to as self-checkout systems. Self-checkout systems may allow a store to make more checkout stations available including the self-checkout systems using a small number of store personnel. In addition, store personnel may be more flexibly employed when self-checkout systems are used.
When using a self-checkout system, a customer typically brings purchase items to the self-checkout system and scans each purchase item using a bar code scanner, radio frequency identifier (RFID) scanner, or the like. The customer may then place the scanned purchase item in a bag. After scanning the purchase items, the customer pays for the purchase items using cash, debit cards, credit cards, and the like.
Unfortunately, the customer often does not scan purchase items in an optimum order for bagging purchase items. Verification devices that verify the bagging of scanned purchase items may also erroneously request that store personnel intervene and check the purchase items if a customer attempts to sort and/or arrange purchase items after the purchase items are scanned and initially bagged.
As a result, self-checkout systems may include a conveyer belt to move the scanned purchase items away from the scanning area after scanning. The customer may then sort and bag purchase items from the conveyer belt after scanning the purchase items, allowing the customer to sort and arrange the purchase items in the bags.
Unfortunately, other customers are typically unable to use the self-checkout system while the customer is bagging purchase items from the conveyer belt. As a result, the bagging customer may feel rushed and may fail to adequately sort the purchase items. The customer may then bag the purchase items in a way that can damage some of the items such as by bagging heavy purchase items with fragile purchase items.
Even if the customer properly sorts the purchase items for bagging, waiting customers may become impatient during the sorting. As a result, the waiting and the bagging customers' shopping experiences may be diminished and the customers may view self-checkout systems less favorable.
From the foregoing discussion, it should be apparent that a need exists for an apparatus, system, and method that sort purchase items at a self-checkout system. Beneficially, such an apparatus, system, and method would aid a customer in rapidly sorting the purchase items for bagging and transport.